Barn finds and Beatles Minis: the best of the London Classic Car Show 2023

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While the Continent has plenty of great indoor car shows to keep European enthusiasts busy throughout the winter, British folk who can't keep making regular journeys across the English Channel can console themselves that they have the London Classic Car Show. Though smaller than many of its European counterparts, it nevertheless brings together some very high-quality cars, showcasing some choice picks from dealers and car clubs, among various other curated exhibitions.

There could scarcely be a better venue. Some places may be bigger, but no modern exhibition hall has the history or beauty of Olympia, which hosted the British Motor Show annually from 1905 to 1936.

Barn finds and anniversaries celebrated

Headlining the event were a number of special displays, including one for barn finds and three for anniversaries - 70 years of the Chevrolet Corvette and 60 of the Porsche 911 and Mini Cooper S. The Mini display was undoubtedly the most impressive, with the earliest surviving Cooper S joined by a couple of race and rally cars, plus the three bespoke cars tailored by Harold Radford for Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr.

The barn finds were by no means run-of-the-mill, either. They included an Opel GT, one of only 500 British-market BMW 3.0 CSLs, an MGA mechanically restored after roasting for over 30 years in the Texan sun and, most significantly, an experimental Jaguar XJ12 prototype from 1968 which was made with the 5.3-litre V12 and a manual gearbox, a combination which never reached production.

Rare and unusual Triumphs a highlight

Among the club displays, the TR Register's is highly commended, thanks to its fascinating spread of rare TR variants, which included a Swallow Doretti, Peerless GT, Triumph 2000 Italia and the 1960 Triumph TRS Le Mans racer with the famous twin-cam 'Sabrina' engine. Another car which really stood out was the 1963 Cadillac Series 62 convertible displayed with Waterloo Classics. This car was sold to its first English owner when nearly new, having been imported by the military attaché to the American Embassy in London, and was presented in a delightfully patinated condition with splendid, all-original upholstery.

A further attraction was the auction, which saw lots of popular collector cars pass under the hammer, along with more rare and unusual pieces. An immaculate and extremely rare 1953 Ford Consul estate (£13,867) appealed greatly and a 1965 Amphicar (£50,960) certainly stood out, but there was surely nothing more interesting than the 1953 Jowett Jupiter Mk. II (£22,640). This car was conceived by Jowett to replace the original Jupiter, but was never actually built in period. It came into being only when some Jowett enthusiasts secured a bare Jupiter chassis and painstakingly built it up following the unused original design.
 

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